With class enrollments rising and its faculty growing in both size and reputation, UC Davis' Asian American studies program is about to hit a new milestone-introduction of an undergraduate major. The interdisciplinary program, which has offered a minor for several years, has received the needed approvals from the UC Office of the President, campus Academic Senate committees and the UC Davis Council of Deans and Vice Chancellors to begin offering a major next fall. Establishing a bachelor's degree program has been a longtime goal of Asian American studies faculty and students, said program director and psychology professor Stanley Sue. Now seems like the right time, Sue said. Student interest is high, the campus has a growing number of faculty members with related research and teaching interests and the discipline itself is becoming "increasingly vigorous." Some 25 to 30 students already minor in Asian American studies. Between 80 and 100 students are expected to choose the topic as their major within the next five years. Classes such as "Contemporary Experience of Asian Americans" taught by associate professor Darrell Hamamoto draw as many as 200 students. Another course that Sue teaches once a year, "Ethnic Self and Identity," typically enrolls 60 to 100 students. The program also has been building its faculty. Three faculty members have been tenured in the past year and a half. Three new faculty members have been hired in the past 2 1/2 years, and the program is currently recruiting two more scholars. The hires would bring the faculty to three full-time members, plus five scholars who hold joint appointments in other departments. Sue said student interest in Asian American studies reflects changing demographics of both the campus and the state. "There are a lot of Asian American students who want to learn about heritage, culture and identity in being Asian American," he said. Other students want to better understand ethnic relations and cultural issues and better prepare themselves for careers in an increasingly multicultural society, he said. "You really can't understand yourself until you start examining other cultures. I found out how American I was when I went to China and taught in China," said Sue, a Chinese American whose father was an immigrant and whose mother was born in this country. UC Davis is the sixth UC campus to offer an Asian American studies major, following UCLA, UC Berkeley, UC Irvine, UC Santa Barbara and UC Santa Cruz. While its program is small compared to UCLA's, Sue said UC Davis has already developed strengths in Asian American psychology and media, and hopes to expand its expertise in immigration law. "We just have to carve out our areas and be really good at what we do," he said. "In these three areas we have the potential for unprecedented scholarship." He directs a National Research Center on Asian American Mental Health, funded by a $600,000 annual grant from the National Institute of Mental Health. Three scholars-associate professors Hamamoto, Kent Ono and Wendy Ho-are authorities on Asian American representation in the media. In addition, assistant professor Karen Shimakawa specializes in Asian American drama and performance. Shimakawa also has a law degree. To build on that law expertise, the program is also seeking to add a "target of excellence" position for an immigration-law specialist who would also teach at the law school. Senior faculty Isao Fujimoto and Peter Leung have provided the program with continuity over the past 30 years, Sue said. Other scholars being recruited by the program are authorities on Filipino American history and Asian American psychology. Sue said the major fits well with the university's globalization and health initiatives. The new major also further establishes the relatively young disciplines of ethnic, cultural and gender studies on campus. African American and African studies, American studies, Chicana/o studies, Native American studies and women's studies already offer majors. Undergraduates also can minor in Jewish studies. The Native American studies department, long a pioneer in its field, will also enroll its first graduate students next fall. Its doctoral program is the second in the country. Students majoring in Asian American studies could take one of two tracks, emphasizing either a humanities or a social-science perspective. Possible careers for graduates include teaching, research, government, law and social services, Sue said.